SouthPeak Interactive is seeking court action as a result of Majesco publishing DS title My Baby 3 & Friends in the US.

The troubled publisher had custody of the My Baby franchise - and its 2 million sales - to date, but last month Majesco revealed it would be handling the third in the mothering simulation series instead.

While the two publishers argue over distribution rights, IP ownership still remains with series developer Nobilis.

In a statement issued to website Joystiq, a SouthPeak representative said: "We are exceptionally proud of our success in making the My Baby franchise a leader in the North American market; our innovative sales, marketing and PR strategies brought My Baby to a huge audience and built a loyal fan base for future products.

"SouthPeak continues to hold the rights to subsequent My Baby games and we intend to vigorously protect those rights."

SouthPeak has a history of litigation, both for and against it. Most recently, it suffered the seizure of 40,000 game units by bailiffs, following non-payment of court-ordered funds to CDV.

A previous claim by Paradox was settled out of a court. Additionally, a verdict is awaited for developer Timegate's accusation of unpaid royalties and breach of contract.

However, it continues to obtain significant investment despite this. Last week, SouthPeak employed a combination of cash and "personal guarantees" to pay off its previous $8 million line of credit and replaced it with $10 million in new funding from a private financial firm.

Three days ago, it obtained an additional $5.5 million in private placement of three-year secured convertible notes - $500,000 of which came from its own chairman, Terry Phillips.

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